The younger generation, starting from where the wind blows...

Chapter 113 The Universe of College Student Internet Celebrities

Xie Qiang returned to the hotel and first sent a text message to Yang Deyuan to report his itinerary.

Not long after the text message was sent, Xie Qiang received a call from Yang Deyuan, asking him to come to his room.

Yang Deyuan had just finished showering and was wearing a bathrobe.

As soon as Xie Qiang entered, Yang Deyuan asked him if he had relayed the message he had asked Xie Qiang to convey to Yang Muye.

The key point is how Yang Muye reacted after hearing this.

Xie Qiang was stunned.

Seeing this, Yang Deyuan frowned.

"What, did you forget to mention it?"

Xie Qiang, regaining his senses, quickly shook his head.

“I did say that, it was what A-Yao said, and I also chimed in with a few words of advice.”

"What did Ono say?"

Xie Qiang was filled with regret. He shouldn't have lied in the first place; now he had to continue lying.

"Uncle, here's what happened. We were trying to persuade him when Muye's three roommates arrived. They all sat together and stopped talking about it."

Yang Deyuan stared into Xie Qiang's eyes, and strangely enough, he didn't find any signs of lying this time.

Did I just wrongly accuse Xie Qiang?
"Really? What did you two talk about after Ono's roommate arrived?"

Xie Qiang hesitated for a moment.

"Uncle, I have to tell you something, but you can't tell Muye that it was me who said it."

Upon hearing this, Yang Deyuan immediately became interested.

"Go ahead and tell me, I promise I'll keep it a secret."

"When we were eating at the hotel before, didn't Ayao mention a song to Makino? I only found out that Makino wrote that song when we were eating barbecue."

Yang Deyuan's eyes widened.

"Ono can write songs?"

Before Xie Qiang could answer, Yang Deyuan asked again, "Since the song was written by Ono, why doesn't he sing it himself, but instead gives it to someone else to sing?"

"Muye opened a talent agency for internet celebrities, and both of his roommates signed with that company."

Be your own boss?

That's more or less.

Yang Deyuan nodded, feeling more and more that Yang Muye resembled his younger self.

"Qiang, do you think Xiao Ye's company is just a hobby, or does it really have a future?"

"Uncle, I—" Xie Qiang looked troubled.

Yang Deyuan immediately realized he had asked the wrong person and thought he would go back and ask Xie Zhiyao again.

Xie Qiang narrowly escaped the situation. After returning to his room, he immediately sent a text message to Xie Zhiyao, instructing him not to let anything slip.

The next day at noon, Yang Deyuan and Xie Qiang took a plane back to Shenzhen.

That evening, the four students from dormitory 203 arrived at the movie theater first.

Wu Di was worried that there wouldn't be any good seats later, so he suggested that they go buy tickets first.

As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Muyi's phone rang.

The call was from Xu Hongdou.

Yang Muye picked up his phone and held it to his ear:

"Are you here?"

"Just got off the bus."

"Okay, then we'll buy the tickets first and wait for you in the lobby."

"It's just me and Nan Nan who came. Xia Qing had already watched this movie with her boyfriend before school started, and Yang Zixi went shopping with her high school classmates."

As Yang Muye listened, he glanced at Wu Di.

"Okay, then we'll buy two fewer tickets."

As soon as the call ended, Wu Di's concerned voice rang out.

"what happened?"

"Xia Qing and Yang Zixi didn't come."

Upon hearing this, Wu Di was instantly stunned.

Yang Muye went to queue up to buy tickets, while Cheng Feng and Shi Xiaomeng stayed behind to comfort Wu Di, saying there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.

Just as he joined the queue, someone suddenly patted Yang Muye on the shoulder from behind.

"Hi!"

Turning around, I saw it was Zhu Xiaobei, the tomboy I'd met at the bar before.

Zheng Wei, Ruan Wan, and Li Weijuan stood not far outside the queue, waving in this direction.

"What movie are you planning to watch?" Zhu Xiaobei asked curiously.

“The Incredible Hulk, what about you?” Yang Muye replied casually.

"The Mummy 3, starring Jet Li, I'm a fan of his, and it was a lot of work to convince the other three people in my dorm to come see it with me."

"Then you're probably going to be disappointed. Jet Li plays the villainous big boss in this movie."

"how is this possible?"

Zhu Xiaobei stared at Yang Muye in shock.

The Mummy 3 was only officially released in theaters today. It's impossible that Yang Muyi just finished watching the movie and came out.

Realizing he had let something slip, Yang Muyi remained calm and quickly explained, "Have you heard of hard drive releases?"

Zhu Xiaobei's eyes widened.

"You actually watched pirated content."

"I know it's wrong to watch pirated movies without you reminding me. What's worse is that I watched pirated movies and then criticized them. I know that's immoral, but I still have to say that I really dislike the villainous BOSS played by Jet Li in this movie."

Before Zhu Xiaobei could refute, Yang Muye continued, "Although it's for making a living, an actor of Li Lianjie's fame and status really shouldn't create a role that would make Chinese people uncomfortable just to cater to foreign stereotypes."

Just as he finished saying this, the person in front of him in line finished buying their ticket.

Yang Muye walked to the counter.

"I want six tickets for The Incredible Hulk, preferably in the middle or back row, and one ticket for The Mummy 3, I can choose any seat."

After the staff issued the ticket, Yang Muye waved the movie ticket for "The Mummy 3" in front of Zhu Xiaobei.

"It's never too late to buy a ticket after you get on the train. Now I'm not really watching a pirated copy anymore. As a viewer who has supported the official version, I can tell you responsibly that this is a terrible movie!"

After saying that, he crumpled the movie ticket into a ball, threw it into the trash can, and turned to leave.

When it was Zhu Xiaobei's turn to buy tickets, she hesitated for a moment before finally making her decision:
"Could you please give me four tickets to The Incredible Hulk? Thank you."

After returning with the tickets, Ruan Wan met up with the other three people in dormitory 213. On the spot, Ruan Wan "interrogated" Zhu Xiaobei about what he and Yang Muye were talking about while queuing, and why Yang Muye had thrown away a movie ticket.

Zhu Xiaobei showed the movie tickets he bought to Ruan Wan and the other two girls.

Zheng Wei sensed something was wrong as soon as she received the ticket.

"Zhu Xiaobei, did you buy the wrong ticket?"

“I made the right choice. Yang Muye told me that ‘The Mummy 3’ was a bad movie, especially the role played by Jet Li, which was quite disappointing, so I switched to this one.”

Zheng Wei was a little angry: "You believe him just because he said so?"

Zhu Xiaobei shrugged: "He admitted that he watched a pirated copy, and then, in order to prove that he was qualified to comment, he specially bought a movie ticket. Anyway, I was convinced."

Zheng Wei persisted, "Even if what he said makes sense, you should have come back and discussed it with us before changing the movie. Do you even think this 'The Incredible Hulk' you bought is good?"

Zhu Xiaobei retorted, "Since you're willing to admit that Yang Muye's words make sense, then you should also trust his aesthetic judgment, right?"

Zheng Wei didn't react at first.

"What do you mean?"

"That means Yang Muye also bought a ticket for The Incredible Hulk. Since we've already bought it, let's watch this one."

Ruan Wan answered for Zhu Xiaobei. Li Weijuan was only brought in to make up the numbers, so there was nothing wrong with that.

Seeing this, Zheng Wei had no choice but to accept reality.

The four of them then bought popcorn and drinks, and by the time they entered the theater, the movie had already started.

The movie theater was pitch black, so Zheng Wei, who was walking at the front, had to turn on her phone's light to find her seat.

The four of them needed to walk through the theater to get their seats, but the aisle below was too far, so they had to walk through the audience area.

"Excuse me, could you please move aside?"

"Thank you, sorry to bother you."

I kept apologizing and thanking them, and as I was getting close to my seat, a handsome face came into view.

It's Yang Muye.

There were two girls sitting next to Yang Muyi, especially the girl next to him. Zheng Wei was certain that she was a great beauty when she caught a glimpse of her with her phone's light.

Both girls stood up with Yang Muyi and made way for Zheng Wei and her group of four.

Zheng Wei didn't want to look directly at the other person's face, but Ruan Wan, who was behind her, saw the girl's appearance clearly.

As soon as she sat down, Ruan Wan turned her head and whispered to Zheng Wei about the girl's identity.

"That girl looks familiar to me. She might be one of the four beauties in the business school."

"Am I as pretty as you?"

"Well, to put it simply, there's at least one Zhu Xiaobei between us. If I were a guy, I would definitely choose her."

Since Ruan Wan, the most beautiful girl in the college, said so, Zheng Wei became even more curious about the girl's relationship with Yang Muye.

"They came out to see a movie together, what could possibly be their relationship? Didn't you hear what Zhu Xiaobei just said? You can doubt Yang Muye without reason, but you can't doubt his taste. The girl next to him is definitely his ideal type."

The rustling voices had barely faded when Zhu Xiaobei coughed loudly beside him.

Zheng Wei and Ruan Wan looked up at the screen and realized that the movie had started. In order not to disturb the people around them, they had to end the conversation hastily.

Two hours later, the movie ended.

As the overhead lights came on, most of the moviegoers got up to leave.

Taking this opportunity, Zheng Wei finally got a clear look at Xu Hongdou sitting next to Yang Muye.

Indeed, as Ruan Wan said, she has a face as beautiful as an angel. Even though her bangs cover most of her beauty, she is still stunning upon closer inspection.

Strangely, while the surrounding audience was preparing to leave, Yang Muye and the two girls beside him remained seated.

Just as Zheng Wei, Ruan Wan, and the other girls were feeling puzzled, Zhu Xiaobei suddenly slapped his forehead.

"I understand, there's a post-credits scene."

Sure enough, after all the subtitles finished playing, the image reappeared on the screen.

In Iron Man, Tony Stark, the protagonist, goes to a bar and finds General Ross, who is drowning his sorrows, asking him about the Hulk's whereabouts.

General Ross asked Tony why he wanted to see the Hulk.

Tony replied, "We're planning to start an organization."

General Ross asked with a meaningful expression, "Us?"

That concludes the Easter egg segment.

Following Yang Muye's advice, Xu Hongdou did her homework before watching the movie and immediately guessed that the "we" in the post-credits scene was a reference to the Avengers mentioned in the post-credits scene of Iron Man.

As they left, Xu Hongdou followed Yang Muyi and asked curiously, "Is this the cinematic universe you mentioned before?"

"That's right, but there are some problems with the filming of 'The Incredible Hulk'. If the global box office performance is not good, I estimate that the Hulk may be temporarily shelved by Marvel for a while. In any case, there probably won't be any more solo movies."

Zheng Wei and Ruan Wan, who were following behind, overheard their conversation, but neither of them understood much of it.

Xu Hongdou was right there, and the two women couldn't possibly stop Yang Muye from asking for clarification.

In the end, I only remembered the term "cinematic universe".

Back at school, Yang Muye parted ways with the others at the school gate and walked back to Fairfield Inn.

Hu Ling had already drunk two cups of coffee in the lobby bar while waiting for Yang Muye to return.

Upon meeting, Hu Ling complained that if she had insomnia tonight, she would definitely blame Yang Muye.

"If you have insomnia, it means you're not suited to drinking coffee."

Yang Muye sat down on the single armchair and looked at Hu Ling.

Hu Ling shrugged noncommittally and got down to business.

“I’ve met Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai. Do you really think they can become famous just because of your nonsensical version of ‘The Lone Warrior’?”

Yang Muye laughed and said, "Do you think I'm a god who can predict the future? Let's try it first, and we'll talk about it if it doesn't work."

Hu Ling then changed her tune: "What if they actually become famous? Will they keep making these kinds of prank videos?"

Yang Muye shook his head.

"That kind of thing you're talking about has been overused by the Back Dorm Boys and their imitators. I want to try something new."

"For example?"

"Web series".

Currently, most of the film and television content on video websites consists of copyrighted content from TV dramas broadcast online, while the vast majority are pirated domestic and international films and television dramas uploaded by users.

As an industry insider, this was the first time Hu Ling had heard of the term "web series."

Yang Muye continued to ask:
"Sister Ling, as someone who used to work in the entertainment industry, I'm sure you abhor piracy. Do you think those film and television copyright companies would be willing to keep putting up with video websites taking advantage of them for free?"

"Of course not. As far as I know, several companies are already preparing to join forces to file a lawsuit."

Hu Ling answered seriously.

Yang Muye spread his hands:
"So, time is running out for video websites. If they can no longer stream pirated content, as the owners of video websites, is it more cost-effective to buy TV series copyrights for online streaming or to produce their own content?"

Hu Ling doesn't understand the market for web dramas, but she knows the market for television dramas.

For major television stations, producing their own content is definitely more cost-effective than buying it.

The same applies to video websites.

"You want to get investment from Youku to support your web series production?"

"As far as I know, Youku already has such a self-produced drama plan, but it hasn't found a suitable project yet."

Hu Ling looked at Yang Muye:
"So you have it?"

"I'm planning to write a web comedy featuring four college students as the main characters."

Hu Ling looked at Yang Muye with curiosity.

"You can write screenplays?"

It's all about copying anyway, anyone with hands can do it.

Instead of answering the question directly, Yang Muyi talked to Hu Ling about the CAA packaging business they had discussed when they first met.

"Now that we have the script and the actors are Old Boys and Plastic Brothers, as long as we get the relevant people in charge of filming and production on board, the whole project can be packaged and handed over to Youku."

What are the selling points of this drama?

"If 'Old Boys' and 'Plastic Brothers' become popular, everyone will definitely be curious about what their campus life is like, and that's exactly what my drama is about."

"Filmed on campus?"

"Correct."

Will the school agree to this?

"Previously, the school personally intervened in the 'Lone Warrior' music video, mobilizing the entire school to share it. Now that our own students are making a web series on our campus, the school has no reason to stop them, right?"

"No, no, you misunderstood me."

Hu Ling shook her head.

First there was "Old Boys," then "Plastic Brothers," and now they're making a web series.

If things continue like this, won't Yanjingmao University become a "celebrity university"?

What Hu Ling could never have imagined was that Yang Muye's true ambition was not just to turn Yanjingmao into a popular university, but to use the university campus as a platform to create a "Avengers"-like universe of university student internet celebrities.

(End of this chapter)